


Battle-Scars

by lyssajanet



Series: The Vestige and the Vessel [4]
Category: Elder Scrolls, Elder Scrolls Online
Genre: F/M, Fluff, OCAngstAndFluffWeek2019, Scars
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-12
Updated: 2019-09-12
Packaged: 2020-10-14 22:28:47
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,109
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20608364
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lyssajanet/pseuds/lyssajanet
Summary: The morning after their wedding, Darien has to acknowledge that so much has happened to his Vestige in the years he was gone. Each scar tells a story of a battle won. He wants to hear about them.





	Battle-Scars

The morning came but the room remained the same; glowing, bright and mysterious. Nothing about Artaeum felt like Nirn, and considering how often it left, it was fitting. But it was beautiful in its own unique way. The floating beds would take some time to get used to, but ideally, the two newlyweds would not have to. Ideally, they would recover the Heart of Transparent Law, put it back where it belonged, and do whatever else they needed to save Nirn. Then they would go home and raise their adorable baby girl together and make up for all the lost years.

Isla sat on the side of the bed, fully rested and barely clothed. Her hands in her hair, putting it back into her trusty braid. There were many times when she debated cutting it short to avoid it getting damaged in combat, but in all her years, it had never happened once. She also enjoyed her hair, and it didn’t hurt that Darien did too.

Darien had gotten half-dressed while she brushed out her hair. Getting all that armor on took a while, and made him less mobile for normal day to day activities, so he put it off until the last minute. He also still claimed sea air was good for the skin, even indoors. Not the Isla was going to complain. She could hear him moving around the room in the otherwise calming silence. Just his presence alone was enough to increase her mood. Knowing he was opening and examining the contents of the dresser drawers made her happier than she had felt in months, as it meant he wasn’t wandering the Colored Rooms, desperately trying to find a way to communicate with the outside world or escape. A soft smile came over her face as her eyes closed in happiness.

This.

_This_ was what she wanted.

“I thought about you. A lot.”

Isla opened her eyes and turned her head to try to locate Darien. “What?”

“In the Colored Rooms, that is.” The bed made a sound as her crawled onto it behind her. “It helped… I don’t know, ground me? Reminded me that I had a life on Nirn, that my life wasn’t just existing in the Colored Rooms being lectured by Meridia. I told myself that even if I forgot everything else about my life, I wouldn’t forget you.” She didn’t know how comfortable he was going into detail about his imprisonment, worried that he would upset or trigger himself with the memories, but by the eight if her heart didn’t fill with joy at those words.

Her hands had reached last bits of the braid, the part where she normally had to bring it to the front to do the rest. Her hair was longer than the reach of her arms. Instead, Darien took the braid in his own hands and began to work on finishing it. “I didn’t realize how much time had passed in Oblivion until I saw you when rescuing me.”

“Are you saying I look old? Also when did you learn how to braid?”

“Oh don’t start that, you know what I meant. And it kept the civilians calm in Camlorn. Anyway, I knew it was you – couldn’t ever forget that face – but I just knew time had passed, a lot of stuff had happened while I was gone. Like that!”

“Like what?”

“I know for a _fact_ that scar wasn’t there last time I saw you.” Darien gestured toward her left shoulder, where a large but faint chunk of scar tissue resided. Isla remembered sliding across the floor of the Cathedral of Akatosh, feeling the skin on her shoulder get scraped and burned off as she watched the Primate close in. Of course, in the end, it was she who lived and he who did not, but that did not distract much from the pain she felt having it healed.

“Yeah you can thank Primate Artorius for that one.” She rolled her shoulder a bit, rubbing at it as the phantom pain surfaced at the memory. “Time magic is stupid.”

That got a chuckle out of him. “I’m sure it is.” He placed a gentle kiss on the scar before finishing up with the last bits of her braid, tying it off with a small strip of leather from the floor. It must have come off the night before in their enthusiasm. Isla smiled at that memory. After Darien finished, he scooched back to admire his work in silence for a moment before speaking again. “What about this one?”

She felt the gentle touch of his finger on her back, just below the end of her ribcage, slow and careful as it traced yet another battle wound. A rather impressive slash by a sword, not that Isla could often see it. Still, she looked behind her as best she could.

“Orc king and his mother.” She look up at him, “Don’t worry, he’s not king anymore.”

His hand moved to her cheek, caressing yet another scar. She knew exactly what he was doing, but even if she were not also so desperate to enjoy every moment of being able to see, touch, and hold the love of her life again, there was not a single part of her that minded the feeling of his hand on her bare skin. “That one?”

“Nicked by a Clockwork City floor blade.”

He scooted in closer, pulling her back to his chest and resting his chin on her shoulder. She could feel his heartbeat beating against her body.

“That one?”

“Shalks.”

“That one?”

“Maomer pirates.”

“And that one?” 

“Oh, fell on a cactus.”

Darien went silent for a moment, hand still hovering over the pin prickle scar marks on her thigh, then collapsed backward on the bed in full body laughter, clutching at his stomach as he tried to get out the word ‘cactus’ several times, ultimately prevented by his own laughter.

Isla felt herself almost get upset, before she realized not only the ridiculousness of the situation and the event that caused it, but also how good it was to hear Darien’s laughter once again.

“What? They can’t all be badass!”

Eventually his laughter calmed into a dopy smile, hearts in his eyes as he gazed up at Isla. “Oh I love you so much.” He held his arm out for her, wiggling his fingers ridiculously.

“Love you too, you dork.” She placed her hand in his, expecting to pull him up, when instead he pulled her down instead. His maniacal laughter rang in her ears as grabbed her in a bear hug. “Hey!” There was nowhere she’d rather be.

**Author's Note:**

> i see the angsty prompt and i make it fluff bc i refuse to be mean  
well, for now.   
partyatsanguines on tumblr


End file.
